The Legend of Zora: The Last Waterbender
by TornadoSoup
Summary: Oles isn't what you'd class as an "ordinary" zora - for one, he's the descendant of an ancient line of waterbenders. Secondly, he's the Zora King's illegitimate son. When he meets a boy called Link and learns that all of Hyrule is in trouble, will he be able to save his home, and bring honour to his name?
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: I'd just like to point out now rather than disappointing a load of people after reading the first chapter - _yes_ this is a blatant pun based on The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra titles., _no_ this is not an Avatar crossover - I've used the concept of waterbending from those series and that's it. You do not need to be a fan of Avatar to understand anything in this fic, but hopefully you're a Zelda fan (I'd be surprised if you weren't, considering you're here) so you can appreciate the world I'm setting this story in :3 I hope you enjoy my first story!**

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"Legend tells of a beautiful zora being the prime source of all water bending.

"Long ago, when Hyrule was new and the earth was still fresh and soft from birth, the ocean wasn't salty. The mountains had no rivers running down them either, nor did the plains have lakes. All water was confined to the beautiful, vast ocean of freshwater - which was clear and calm and bright.

"The zoras all had to live under the Ocean's protection; from the waist down they each had a long, sleek tail, and were confined to swimming in the water, not able to walk on land.

"The Ocean was in love with one of the zoras - she was named Lira, and was the most beautiful girl in the tribe. She was also one of the cleverest, and one day she decided to ask the Ocean:

"'My friend, why must we stay here? There is a whole new portion of the world over there that I would love to see!' To which the Ocean replied,

"'Dear Lira, why must you call me your friend when you know how I feel for you? I wish to keep you here because I love you, and want you to marry me. I wish to keep the others here because I love all of them too, oh so dearly.'

"But Lira didn't want to marry, and she didn't want to live forever in the Ocean, as beautiful as it was, so she begged and begged until it granted her wish. The Ocean reached out a wave to a cliff face, and cut off a chunk of rock. It used the power of its waves to carve the rock into two strong legs, and it gave them to Lira. It told her to go see the world she longed for so dearly, and to return when she was ready to marry, knowing all too well that zoras could not survive for too long away from water.

"Lira ventured off onto land and fell in love with it; the weather, the meadows, the mountains, and everything in between. She decided that she didn't want to go back to the confines of the Ocean and its possessive nature.

"She did return soon however, and the Ocean roared and bubbled in delight. It asked her if she was ready to be wed, but then Lira shook her head and sighed.

"'I was wrong to leave you, dear Ocean - you are far more beautiful and benevolent than the land's ghastly inhabitants!' She wept into her hands and the Ocean stirred in panic, and asked her what had happened. She told tales of monsters who had shunned and threatened her because of her fish-like appearance, and how frightened she had been, and again the Ocean became choppy and distressed. 'Pray, let me borrow your waves, so I can protect my honour.' Said Lira. 'I will create a monsoon and destroy their livelihood, then they can be sorry for what they have done.'

"The Ocean, being the vain type and one to take offence easily itself, obliged merrily, and granted Lira the power of its waves. She left again, but this time didn't return until a great deal later, when the Ocean spotted her carving her way through the edge of the land with the power of its waves, and it asked her what she was doing.

"In the past few days, Lira had walked as far inland as she possibly could until she was almost weak, and had built an ever-flowing pool atop a mountain using her waves. After resting, she had then proceeded to carve passageways from the pool to flow back to the Ocean, lest the water overflowed and flooded the earth.

"She told the Ocean that she was building rivers, and that she would live there instead, so as to always be in contact with the creatures of the land. This insulted the Ocean greatly and when Lira had again left, it felt itself turn bitter and angry. The other zoras began to choke and cry as salty water entered their gills and eyes, and the Ocean let them suffer, too wrapped up in its own self pity.

"When the Ocean later noticed the other zoras swimming into the river's estuary, it asked them where they were going. They turned and said that Lira had swam to them in the night and asked them to join her. The Ocean's waves lapped violently in anger and asked how they would survive with the restriction of staying in the rivers at all times, to which the zoras replied that Lira was going to carve legs for all of them. Then they left without a backwards glance.

"The Ocean was never calm and flat again, and remained forever salty and bitter, while Lira rose to become the leader of her people in their freshwater realm. She kept the waves under her command, and protected her people with them until she departed this world in peace." Marella finished, snapping the weathered storybook made of woven river weeds shut and placing it on a shelf of rock inside the cave bedroom. Oles was quiet, as he always was when being told a story, but his wide violet eyes gave away his intrigue. He kept staring at Marella as she turned back to him to put him to bed.

"What colour was she?" He asked, clambering into a narrow, deep pool that acted as the entrance to the cave as well as a bed. He waited for his mother to follow him in before he rested in the cover of some pondweed. Marella sighed, and Oles watched tiny bubbles fly out of her gills.

"Oh, I don't know... Turquoise, like you." At that, Oles made a face, and his skin faded into a more blue shade. Marella laughed. "I'm quite sure she couldn't change colour."

"Why not?"

"Because that's a special thing," Marella said, arranging the weeds around her son like she was drawing a curtain closed, a sign that she wanted him to sleep.

"But she _was_ special!" Oles said, pushing his head through the weeds.

"Fine, something only you and me can do." Marella said warmly, poking his forehead with her index finger to coax him backwards.

"Why can't Dad do it?" At that, Marella froze up, and thought for a moment before answering.

"Because.. You can change colour because of me, and you can water bend because of him."

"But... Dad can't water bend?" Oles had poked his head out again, and was looking at his mother in a confused way. She really did love her son, but she wished he didn't ask so many questions.

"Sometimes these things skip a generation, darling. Go to sleep now."

At that, Oles surrendered and resigned to his quarters, settling into an easy sleep.

Marella couldn't drift off quite so easily, and eventually pulled-back Oles' bed curtains. She regarded him for a long time, a sad smile on her face as her son slept. She tried to commit all of his image to memory - the turquoise pigment of his skin and the cuttlefish tentacle-shaped "hair" (both things that he had inherited from _her_ , she noted with affection), the fins on his arms that were too strong and not decorative enough to belong to a royal zora. The only things that hinted that he were different were the colour of his eyes, which were closed, and... Oh, w _hy did he have to be a waterbender?_ Why couldn't he at least be given the chance to fit in?

She turned around, sighing and wincing at the sickness-induced sting in her gills.

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 _ **10 years later...**_

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"Hey, Oles!"

Oles stopped his walk out of the Zora's Domain and turned towards the voice. It was Silver who had called him; a head-to-foot sterling coloured Zora whose cheer was usually as bright as his iridescent skin. Today though, he approached Oles with a soft voice and a cautious step. The turquoise zora smiled - the pair were best friends, so Oles understood that the gentle approach was not motivated by pity, but consideration.

"Hey, Silver." Oles said sort of solemnly, but half-forced a smile for the sake of his best friend. "What's up?"

"I just wanted to check on you before you visited Ma- your mom." Silver said, blue eyes shining with concern. "Leyti'd be here too, but she's got training with the guards."

Oles smiled again and tried to look grateful. He really was, it was just hard to feel cheery today. "Thanks. I don't think I'll be too long this time round since I've already visited her recently, I'll probably be back by noon." He said. Silver clapped a hand on his friend's shoulder and nodded, before turning to walk back into Zora's Domain.

He was on his own again now. Oles sighed and kept walking down the mountain path until he reached a calmer section of the river, where he jumped in. He glided gracefully through the water like a dragon, spinning and leaping out into the air to avoid rocks and sharp bends in the river until he reached a bridge. He knew that climbing out at this spot would put him on the path to the graveyard. He walked slowly and thoughtfully, taking his time to place each foot in front of the other and to get closer to the difficult emotional confrontation he forced upon himself at least once a year. Granted, it was easier for him to visit his mother's grave now than it had been years ago, but that didn't mean it would ever stop hurting completely.

As he walked through the narrow passageway between high rocky walls, Oles found himself facing someone else already leaving.

It was an older Zora; pure blue skin and purple eyes gave him away as a royal, as well as the many rings on his fingers, which had clenched with anxiety when their owner spotted Oles standing there. Oles just glared. Of all people to be encountering on today, of all days - the anniversary of his Mother's death - King Basile was not somebody he wanted to talk to.

Unfortunately, the King looked like he had something to say. Oles thought about nodding curtly as he walked past the older Zora into the graveyard, but decided to blank him. He felt the King's eyes burning guiltily onto his back as he walked away from him.

"Oles." He called. Oles stopped, but didn't bother turning his head. "I was wondering if we could talk."

Oles gave him a pregnant pause before responding. "What about, _Dad_?" He strained the last word so hard that he might as well have been ringing its neck. He could feel the awkward aura radiating off the King behind him, and felt almost satisfied at the levels guilt he must have been feeling. Oles wasn't stupid, he _knew_ that he was a disgrace purely for being born out of wedlock. He knew that he could use his heritage to make the King feel guilty and remorseful, and so he did it whenever he could. He had nothing to lose even if talking back to the King _could_ get him in trouble, because he was a bastard with no family alive to be taken away from anyway. It was the only way he could make Basile pay.

Basile swallowed at the term Oles had mockingly used, before stepping slightly closer to his son. "I... Word is there's been a lot of raids on neighbouring towns by monsters. Ple- ...Do be careful when you make your way back." He said hesitantly. The younger zora looked back at him, not bothering to answer. "...Please don't be reckless, this really is a serious problem. Your mother would want you to be safe."

Oles was prepared to bite back with a response reprimanding him for having no idea what his relationship was like with his mom, but then he thought of all the times she'd watch him when he was little.

 _"Mom, look!" A six-year-old Oles chirped, speeding towards his mother. Marella crouched down to his level and smiled warmly._

 _"What is it, O?"_

 _Oles grinned wickedly and whipped out an old waterskin he had been hiding behind his back. "Check this out! Now I can go as far away from water as I want and I'll be ready for anything!" He said excitedly, and raised his left hand. Water shot out of the waterskin's opening and followed the child's silent instruction. The trail floated in a line like a transparent stick, then suddenly curled and attacked the air like a whip. Marella laughed in delight and patted her son's head._

 _"You're getting really good."_

 _"Do you think they might even let me into the royal guard early?"_

 _Marella visibly tensed at that, but recovered quickly and patted her son's head again._

 _"Maybe not quite that early. And besides, I don't want you fighting. You need to stay safe and keep me safe here!" She leaned in to grab her son and ruffle his cuttlefish hair, and Oles was soon giggling and running away to escape his mother playfully, easily distracted from the previous conversation._

Oles smiled at the memory. She'd always wanted him to fit in; never to stand out and potentially become an outcast or be put in harm's way. He figured he couldn't help half of that, but he could at least try to stay safe. For her. He looked back at the King and gave him a small nod. Basile then looked like he was about to put a hand on his shoulder, before thinking better of it and stepping back. "Thank you, Oles." He said softly so he was barely audible, dipping his head in a quick gesture of thanks before rushing off back to Zora's Domain.

He didn't watch his father go, just continued into the graveyard until he met a certain headstone towards the back of the yard. It was plain and simple: Marella's name, birthdate and death date chiselled into the speckled-with-green slate, the edges weathered slightly with time. Oles realised with a stab of guilt that he didn't have any water lilies with him, which had been her favourite flowers, but that some had already been placed on the grave that day, by the looks of it. They stood out against the grass as a beautiful flush of pink. Oles guessed that Basile had probably put them there, which made him feel even guiltier as he considered taking them off. He'd never really understood how his mother had felt about his father when she died, as he had been too young, and in the end decided to just leave the flowers be.

He sat down cross-legged in front of the stone and ran a webbed hand down it's flat, grey surface. The day had become sort of gloomy and he thought his turquoise skin looked more like a murky blue against the stone; desaturated of energy and dulled. Just how he felt being here. "Hey, mom."

He didn't talk for long, not really having anything new to say, and sort of surprised himself with how quickly he was ready to leave. He looked back over his shoulder at the gravestone as he was leaving, before wandering back down to the river path that would lead him back home, except when he rounded the last corner to the water, he was met with squeals and animalistic shouts - he'd come face-to-face with a horde of bulbins.

Oles knew the nature of these creatures well enough. They were dumb, hostile, and traveled in packs. They all turned simultaneously towards the young zora and exhibited their weapons upon seeing him, and Oles knew he'd be in trouble if he didn't do something. He could run and they'd probably give up on chasing him pretty quickly, but he had always been the type to pick fights for the hell of it, even if he managed to suppress that part of himself most of the time.

"Oh no," Oles said indifferently, backing away from the throng and towards the riverbank a bit. He put his hands up in front of his chest in a _"don't hurt me"_ gesture, and as expected, the bulbins didn't care.

"How about fish for dinner tonight, boss?" One of the monsters said to their supposed leader: a slightly taller and darker-skinned bulbin, who bared his rotten teeth in a beastly grin at Oles and brandished his club.

"If we can stop him from swimming away."

"Please," Oles said halfheartedly, "can't we just pass each other by?" He waved his arm closest to the water and turned his palm up imploringly. The bulbins started to advance on him quickly at their leader's words, "ah, I guess you guys are the unfriendly types." Oles said sadly as he waved his arm dismissively, the movement causing some water from the river to leap out in the direction he'd flapped his hand and hit the closest bulbin in the face. The monster reeled back in shock and seethed from the pain of the hard impact on his eyes.

The other bulbins froze for a split second, and Oles grinned. He didn't give any of them time to process what had happened, and was suddenly spinning and kicking and hurling seemingly invisible objects, each movement forcing strong blasts of water to smash into the group of bulbins. He bit his tongue to hold back his laughter as a particularly strong jet of water made impact with a bulbin's head, sending them flying backwards and knocking over three of their comrades in the process. Oles stopped his acrobatic dance then, planting his feet firmly on the ground and raising his hands high above his head. This silent command brought a massive wave looming over his shoulders, and the bulbins barely had time to scream as the wave leaped over Oles and crashed into the horde, knocking all of them over like bowling pins.

Oles dusted off his hands with a satisfied air, and turned tail to head back home when something whacked the back of his legs, hard, making him fall backwards and hit his head on the ground. He hissed in pain and his vision wobbled for a second, and suddenly the darker bulbin was towering over him.

"You're bold for a kid with no skills in combat except for flicking water." He said, resting a great foot on Oles' chest that knocked the air out of his lungs. He reached up reflexively and grabbed the boot, which made the bulbin smirk darkly and press more weight on him. Oles coughed and scrambled underneath him, but he was stuck.

The bulbin laughed as his dark, piggy eyes roamed almost hungrily over the zora's helpless form, but he suddenly looked up and put a hand out to presumably stop another bulbin that must have been approaching. "We're not going to kill him. You saw the magic he possesses - this is Zora royalty."

"A prince?" A gratey voice sounded nearby. Oles cursed himself for all of their apparent quick recoveries and noted that, if he somehow didn't die from this encounter, he was definitely going to work on his waterbending strength later on. "What do we do? Hold him for ransom?"

"That may be our best bet. Water mages like this runt here don't sprout that often on the royal family tree, do they boy?" The leader bulbin pressed his foot down again on Oles' chest so he could only wheeze and scrabble underneath him in a desperate attempt to take in air. The bulbin laughed and finally took his foot away and stepped back, looking to another bulbin out of the zora's line of vision, muttering something that sounded like "subdue him".

Oles felt a quick sharp pain to the side of his head, and then everything went black.


	2. Chapter 2

Oles groaned as he came to - his head hurt, it felt swollen and he couldn't move anything. On top of that, he felt so dehydrated - how long had he been out of water? He managed to force his eyes open, bloodshot and stinging, to see where he was.

...Everything was upside-down. His head was floating - no - dangling in mid-air; his body was tied up and hanging from the ceiling of what looked like a makeshift hut. Oles tried to release his hands, call for help, twist his body to look around the structure, anything - anything that would help him understand where he was. He strained to remember what had happened - he remembered a club to the head, running into King Basile, sitting by Marella's grave... He knew he wasn't remembering things in their correct order.

He concentrated on listening to his surroundings for a moment and could hear commotion outside: monstrous shouts and grunts of... alarm?

Suddenly a hunched figure ran into Oles' hut, which he noted to be a bulbin. _Ah... The reason he wasn't dead - they'd caught him waterbending. So they thought he was royalty...?_ "Hey," Oles choked out, his voice strained from the heavy pressure of all the blood collected in his head and throat, almost constricting him from breathing comfortably. The bulbin didn't turn to look back at him, too busy aiming an arrow out a tiny window. "Hey-! Let me down or there'll be trouble!" But his bluff was ignored.

Oles tried his best to sway and wriggle in his bonds to get the bulbin's attention, but it seemed to be too late for that as the sickening, unfamiliar squelch of metal through flesh sounded throughout the tiny room, and the creature fell backwards onto the floor. Dark, scarlet blood quickly stained the ripped fabric clothes framing the fresh gaping wound in its chest. Oles froze in alarm as he took in the sight.

Something had just come up to the hut, the hut _he was trapped in_ , and killed that bulbin without a moment's hesitation or struggle. If Oles hadn't already been severely dehydrated, his mouth would have gone dry from fear.

Everything outside had gone silent. The mesh curtain hanging over the door was suddenly swept aside to reveal the intruder of what could only be the bulbin camp, and their silhouette loomed in the entranceway. The young zora's pupils contracted from light exposure and terror as the figure took a torturously slow step into the room.

"Woah, are - are you alright?" A soft voice asked. The figure was now quickly rushing to where Oles hung, and their face came into focus. "Can you hear me?" Bright blue eyes shone with concern (or at least that's what it looked like upside-down) and inspected the zora's face. Oles flinched backwards from the close proximity. This face and voice didn't look or sound rough and unpleasant like the bulbin soldiers he had encountered, but he still felt nervous. He'd never met a Hylian before, and this was definitely a weird way to meet one.

"Watch it," Oles tried to sound threatening, but it was hard when he couldn't breathe properly and was completely restrained. He turned his face away from the human in front of him, not sure how to respond to the inspecting gaze.

"Oh - sorry, do you want me to cut you down?" Before Oles could respond, the human had walked behind him and he heard a _shing_ from the unsheathing of a sword, a _snap_ of the rope holding him up, and even the painful _thud_ as his body hit the floor. The zora coughed as his chest hit the floor and it felt like a dust cloud had been released in his lungs. His vision almost swam from dehydration as he looked up at his... saviour?

"Oh, sorry about that! I probably shoulda thought that through before I dropped ya." The human said hurriedly, dashing back almost clumsily to where Oles lay and offering him a leather-clad hand.

Oles looked up past the gloved hand to the face of its owner. If humans were anything like zoras then this one was more than likely near his own age; his facial features were still sort of soft, his eyes were large and his cheeks were smooth and clean and rosy, though he still had the straight, defined jawline of an adult male and those large blue eyes seemed completely unfazed by the pool of blood seeping out of the bulbin he'd just killed, not five feet away from him. Oles felt differently about the liquid creeping up on him as he watched it stain the earthy ground out of the corner of his eye, so he took the stranger's hand to avoid getting soiled.

"My name's Link." The boy smiled sheepishly as he pulled the zora onto his feet. Oles thought that for someone wearing chainmail and bearing a sword, he looked rather uncertain of himself. He decided he was in a bad mood and to not bother with trying to be understanding.

"Good to know." Oles said, dusting himself off. "Have you ever met a zora before?"

"Ah - no, but I've been sent to talk to your king-"

"Then why are you throwing yourself into enemy camps all by yourself? I'm assuming you're not with anyone?"

"I have training!" Link raised his voice defensively, but then his volume diminished again. "This was the safest route I could take to get to Zora's Domain. Have you not seen? These monsters are all over Hyrule now."

Oles didn't know what to say to that. He didn't really come down from the mountain at all unless it was to visit his mother's grave. He supposed he hadn't seen bulbins like that in a long time, they were usually territorial creatures and if he encountered them it would only be one or two of them getting too close to the mountain ranges, they didn't purposefully _raid_ in large packs like that in these parts.

"Listen," Link's voice snapped him back to reality, "I know this is a lot to ask but I need to speak to your king. I have orders from the Princess of Hyrule. Do you think you'd be able to take me to him?" The Hylian boy's expression was finally firm, he looked like he was filled with determination and this made Oles smile for some reason.

"Yeah, okay."

First things first, Oles insisted that they took their time by the river, giving him time to drink his fill and lie in the shallows for a short while, soaking up the moisture with a satisfied sigh. Link sat cross-legged on the riverbank with his chin resting on his hand, clearly bored. _What kind of knight is this guy?_ Oles wondered to himself, and finally decided to get up. He chose not to shake any water off and let it just drip off him, since the day was warm and he'd dry off quick, not that he minded being wet anyway. He looked up to see the sun was leaning to the West in the sky and guessed it was early evening by now. He hoped it was the same day that he had left, or Silver and Leyti would have a fit when he saw them.

The pair walked upstream until they were in a small gorge. There was a waterfall at the end of it, and some calm shallows to the side near where Link and Oles now stood. Oles stepped into the shallows.

"You're going to have to ride on my back if you want to get up there." Link looked dazed. Oles shrugged. He knew how it was done; he used to have to ride on his (or Silver's) mother's back to swim up the waterfall until he was about nine or ten and strong enough to do it himself. There was no way this human was going to be able to do that. "You just need to get on my back, it's easy." Oles lazily tried to reassure the nervous boy, and eventually Link hopped on his back with a furrowed brow and clamped his hands on the zora's shoulders in a vice-like grip. Oles sucked air through his teeth in surprise, since this kid had looked like sort of a weakling. He was short and well-groomed and soft spoken, so to know that he was deceptively strong was sort of impressive.

Oles decided to put on his own show, and swam up the waterfall as fast as he could. He was technically the fastest swimmer in his tribe, though that was only because he had waterbending on his side to propel him faster through the water. Link didn't seem fazed by the speed they went at though, and Oles started to seriously doubt his initial impression of the boy. Forget speed, this kid didn't seem fazed by anything.

Link hopped down in the shallows at the top and Oles prompted them on further. "We've got a ways to go until we're at the throne room, we still need to walk through my village first." He thought of the looks he'd get for bringing a human into the village. Hylians didn't have a bad reputation among zoras but the two species weren't exactly on the best of terms either. "...It might be best if we found my friend Silver before meeting the King, though..." _because Silver isn't an outcast and the Queen won't get pissed off with him, he thought to himself._

They walked down a long cave-like passageway where the waterfall was coming from, and the other end opened up to a large open-top chamber, lined with shelves of rock. The middle of the room was filled like a hundred-foot-deep basin with water. The sky was visible through the giant hole in the top of the chamber, and the pastel-coloured light of sunset bounced around the pale walls, painting the room with shades of yellow and pink and lilac, and even small rainbows danced in the spray of other waterfalls falling around the edges of the enclosed village. Oles peeked out of the corner of his eye to see Link peering blatantly around the chamber as they walked through, probably in love with the sight. Oles knew he was himself, even if he didn't always feel that welcome there.

"Oles!" A new voice called ahead of them, and both boys turned to see a female zora walking towards them.

"Leyti," Oles breathed as he spotted his friend. Leyti had known him since they were seven, when his mom had passed away. They'd met a few days after the funeral, and she'd been the only person other than Silver - who he'd known since birth - who seemed to know how to cheer the grieving zora up. The three of them had been best friends since then, and Oles had always harboured a soft spot for her.

Leyti smiled as she walked up. She was holding a spear and a giant, shell-like helmet under her other arm. It looked heavy, and like she was struggling not to drop it. On any other day Oles would have probably teased her and said she looked silly, but he couldn't help but admire her as she clutched onto her new gear with a grin.

"How was training?" He said as Leyti reached the pair.

"Are you not going to introduce me to your friend?" She said, dumping her helmet next to her on the path with a huff and smiling up at Link. Oles groaned.

"This is Link." He said, gesturing to the human sort of dismissively. "Listen, do you know where Silver is? I need him to take Link to see Basile."

"Why do you need Silver to do it?" Leyti retorted, putting a hand on her hip. "Why can't you do it? Or me, come to think of it? I _am_ a member of the royal guard now. Hello, by the way, Link. My name's Leyti." She said, giving the human her hand to shake. He took it politely and nodded to her as he shook it. Oles appreciated that he didn't have much to say.

"You know how Scylla is with me. And I don't want to get you in trouble," He argued back, looking between the Hylian and the other zora.

Leyti put both her hands on her hips and leaned forward. "I don't see why I'd get into trouble with the Queen for taking a human to the throne room. Why do you need to speak to our king anyway, Link?"

Link finally opened his mouth to respond, but Oles grabbed his arm and tugged him past Leyti before she could stop them.

"Hey, wait!" Oles heard the scraping of her helmet on the ground and a huff as she picked it up. He laughed to himself, she made it sound like a boulder. "He was just by the mountain passage - but I'm taking it personally that you're not letting me get involved!" She called after them.

"Thank you!" Oles called over his shoulder with a grin.

Leyti'd been right of course; Silver was sat near where she'd said, with his feet dangling in the water and hands occupied with what looked like a tiny wooden horn, bent at the middle.

"Hey, Silver."

"Oh hi, Oles! You're back late." Silver said, not turning to face his friend, but he waved the little wooden artefact above his head to show it off. "Check this out, the fairies had gotten me a new human widget today when I visited the fountain! They said it's a musical instrument-"

"Silver,"

"-and it's called a snarfblat! You just blow in this end-"

"Silver-"

"-right here and it's supposed to make a noise but I think it's broken, ash keeps-"

"Silver!"

"-coming out of here so maybe I should clean it but I don't know how-"

"Nayru's sake, Silver, will you look at who's with me?" Oles managed to interrupt. The silver-grey zora went quiet as he finally turned to look away from the wooden pipe in his hands and up at Link, who was stood next to Oles sheepishly.

"Oh my gosh, why- how- real human." Silver spluttered, looking up at the blond boy. "Hello. Um. Why is he here?"

"He needs to talk to Basile. Would you mind escorting him to the throne room? I don't think I'd be the best person to take him."

Silver immediately hopped up from the ground and nodded his head vigorously. "Of course I can take you! It's a pleasure to meet you, I've never met a human before, oh - my name's King, I can take you to the Silver - I mean, oh gosh, um." Oles watched as his friend's face lit up in a deep red glow of embarrassment and turned away, head hung in shame as he gestured for Link to follow him. Oles decided to follow the pair, just in case Silver perked up again and got so distracted by Link's race that they'd never reach the throne room, but he surprisingly stayed pretty quiet throughout the short trip.

When they finally reached the throne room Oles decided to hang back, leaning against a pillar out-of-sight and sending a final reassuring nod to Link before he walked out of his line of vision. Despite how dismissive he'd been since he met Link, he _was_ curious about the situation.

He heard the King begin to speak, and then Queen Scylla's voice rip through the chamber.

"I saw you come in with them, Oles! Why are you skulking back there?" Oles' head rolled back to hit the pillar behind him and he groaned in defeat. "Come here this instant!" The Queen sounded particularly irritable today, which couldn't be good news for him.

He dragged his feet slowly into the main part of the throne room, looking up to see King Basile sat in the throne, and next to him as usual, Queen Scylla, standing out of her neighbouring seat with her arms clutching the King's like she hoped to possess him. Oles was familiar with this arrangement; Basile had never seemed like much of a leader, but his queen did. He just acted as her passive amplifier.

"Why is Silver bringing this human before us when I definitely saw _you_ letting him into our midst?" Scylla barked, icey blue eyes piercing Oles on the spot like a harpoon. What was he supposed to say? He hadn't wanted to deal with her?

"Your Majesty, if I may," Silver interjected, ever the loyal friend. "Oles was just worried that the human might not be trusted if he had escorted him in."

Link's eyes widened at that, and looked over Oles, who was trying to stand tall even below the elevation of the royals before him.

"He was absolutely correct, dear Silver." Scylla said the last two words with sickly sweetness in mock praise. Oles couldn't help but grit his teeth. "Maybe Oles didn't want to show his face because he thought he'd get away with letting an assassin infiltrate the throne room if he wasn't there."

The waterbender clenched his fists, and the water in the pool behind him lapped at the rock he was standing on. "You know that's not the case!" He protested. "Why-"

"What gives you the right to talk back to your superior?"

"Why the hell would a Hylian knight come here _in uniform_ to assassinate either of you?"

"Watch your tongue, lowlife." Scylla seethed, and her icy eyes seemed to flash white. "This boy is clearly not a knight of Hyrule. Look at his clothes; that's not royal armour, they're practically rags!"

Basile's expression had become increasingly more worried as the conversation went on, and he finally put a hesitant hand on one of his wife's. "Scylla, calm down-"

"Don't, Basile." The Queen warned, snatching her hands away from him completely. She walked to the edge of their elevated platform to tower over the three teenagers. "Look at him, Oles. He has weapons concealed in his bag, did you really not think to confiscate them?"

All three boys looked down to a satchel on Link's side, and sure enough little daggers and slingshots were poking out of the sides of small pouches lining the edge of the bag. Link looked up at Oles, hands raised and a worried expression on his face. He shook his head violently, but Oles already knew that Scylla didn't think he was a threat, either. She just wanted to make life harder for the bastard son of her husband, and she wasn't failing.

Oles turned back to the royals, and the water began to bubble at his feet. "I don't know why you're making such a big deal out of this than it needs to be! Have you left the village recently, _Your Majesty?_ I got attacked by an _army_ of them today, and this human saved me!" He gestured angrily to his right to indicate Link, and a jet of water rocketed to the right as well behind them. He saw Silver flinch out of the corner of his eye, and realised he should probably calm down-

"Look at him, acting like he's some gift from the gods." Scylla laughed coldly to her husband, who continued to sit silently in his throne. He couldn't look at Oles, and just stared down at his feet. This made the bubbling of the water even more violent. "Just because you're the first waterbender to turn up in a few generations, doesn't mean you're a deity, boy! And you're not a prince either." _fists clenched tighter,_ "Try to remember that you hold no power over us."

"Like _hell_ I don't!" Oles flounced on the spot. A large wave hit the backs of the three boys' legs. "Why are you being so hardheaded- You-!" Silver had come up behind him and held him back, which only made him struggle more. He usually avoided Scylla like the plague if he could, and even when he did encounter her it was while walking along a path or swimming somewhere. The last time he had to talk to Scylla in the throne room was when he was seven, and the only reason he got away with blowing up then was because of his age. Now Scylla had gotten him to play right into her hands, and she could punish him however she saw fit. She smirked sadistically and beckoned to someone on the side.

"Kaspar, come here."

Oles hadn't even noticed the Prince, stood at the edge of the raised platform the King and Queen were on. Kaspar stepped forward purposefully, looking to his mother for instruction. He was sixteen, one year younger than Oles, but already really did look like a noble; fins sprouted from his shoulders and draped over his arms, making him look like he was wearing some fine cloak tailored for a prince. He had the electric blue skin and brilliant, violet eyes that were well-known traits of the Zora monarchy, and to top it all off, the tail on the back of his head, as well as the fins on his arms and his legs, were all tipped with gold that shone whenever they caught the sun. Gold flecks sparkled on his face as he glanced over to his half-brother, too, and all of it made him look like he was made of precious minerals and gems. Oles scowled up at the groomed prince, and then shifted his attention back to Scylla.

"Darling, what do you think of what you've just seen?" Scylla asked her son, weaving an arm around his shoulders and holding him possessively. Kaspar looked sort of nervously over to Oles, and then down at his own feet.

"I think he could be a danger to you," Kaspar started, and his mother jumped back in when he hesitated.

"You're absolutely correct." She unlatched herself from the boy and folded her arms over her chest, looking down on Oles. "I think you've been leeching off this hardworking community for too long, whelp. You're old enough to take care of yourself, so maybe you should run off and do that."

Oles just stared at her, eyes going wide. "Wh.. What are you saying?"

The sides of Scylla's lips twitched up momentarily before she replied. "I'm saying that you're in exile from this moment, until further notice." She snapped her fingers, and two burly guards appeared out of nowhere, heading for the podium on which Oles, Link and Silver stood. Silver seemed terrified, Link looked confused, Kaspar was shuffling awkwardly next to his mother and Basile had shifted forward in his seat.

"Scylla, is this truly necessary, he's still just a boy-"

"He's nearly _eighteen_ , Basile. You've seen what he can do with that cursed magic, it'll be the downfall of all of us if he's merely caught in a bad mood! He almost hurt Silver just then-"

"This is completely unfair! I'll die out there!" Oles spat, glaring up at the Queen. The pool of water had its own tide now, and Oles was trying desperately to keep it from getting wilder, but it was hard.

"Then prove that you're of use to our tribe and you can come back. Contribute to something."

She looked like she was about to sit back in her own throne when one of the guards called out.

"Your Majesty, what should we do with the human?"

Link's left hand flew to the hilt of a sword on his back. Oles noted that he seemed to grip it absentmindedly as he glared back at the zora guards, rather than threateningly. He also noticed Scylla suddenly tense and cast Link an offended look.

"Remove him along with the mage, we're not interested in what he has to say." She said, waving her hand dismissively and turning away, other hand on Kaspar's back and guiding him out of the chamber. King Basile had gone quiet again.

"Oles, no-!" Silver cried as a guard restrained his hands behind his back and started to walk him out of the throne room. "Please don't do this! He hasn't done anything to hurt anyone-"

"Hey!"

Oles turned back to the guard on his other side, who was pointing his spear at Link - presumably because of his sword. Link looked about ready to whip his shield out or something, but Oles was already pushing the guard over with a jet of water to the head and grabbing Link by the elbow. He'd curse himself for being so impulsive later.

"What are you-" Link yelped,

"Just come on!" The zora snapped, running back down the hall.

"What is he doing? Stop him!" Queen Scylla barked behind them, and Oles heard the splashing of running feet in shallow water. He rounded a corner and pulled Link with him, still holding onto his arm with an almost-deathlike grip.

"Should I be worried that I've run off with you instead of trying to calmly argue my case as I'm escorted off the premises?" Link shouted, trying to be audible over the commotion of yells and splashes. Oles couldn't help but laugh.

"Probably. Sorry, er, I can let you go if you want?" He called back over his shoulder as they ran down another river passageway that flowed away from the throne room.

Link suddenly yanked his arm out of the zora's hand and was running alongside him. "That might help me run faster." He panted, grinning at Oles' bewildered expression. "I don't like to think of what those big guys would do to me if I hung around, I've already gotten this far into trouble anyway!"

Getting over the confusion, the zora flashed his human companion a wicked grin. Suddenly his eyes darted forwards. "Ah- turn right!" He yelped, his feet skidding to slow down before they could run into a wall. Oles wasn't very familiar with the river tunnel network surrounding the throne room, as being there meant he might encounter Scylla. He only hoped running through here would lead them somewhere helpful. All they had to do was run _with_ the water so as not to end up back at the throne room, and-

"Holy Hylia-!" Link practically shrieked, managing to stop himself just in time from toppling off the walking platform in the stream and down the waterfall that had forced it to end. Oles did the same, and looked down the lengthy drop. The waterfall led down into a great ravine, the water was white with wave crests conjured up from rapid, violent crashes and turns. Both boys gulped.

"Let's go somewhere else." Oles said, voice cracking. He span on his heel to run back to the fork in their path they'd just passed, but suddenly four guards had emerged from around the corner. They were all tall and muscular, one of them even had spines running down the back of his head rather than regular fins. Oles knew his waterbending was too weak to even distract them so they could slip by. He sighed in defeat and looked at Link, who looked terrified.

"They're probably not going to hurt us, you didn't do anything." _Sorry I got you into this._ "If I'm in big trouble don't take it out on the human. I'll leave quietly." He stepped forward, arms opened apologetically. "Can I at least say goodbye to-"

"What are you rambling about now, brute?" The Queen was behind the guards now, with a worrying expression on her face. She slunk over to them and planted herself between two guards. "You bolted. Why should we stop you?" She gestured to the waterfall at Link and Oles' backs. "Go on. Jump."

"No, that would kill us." Oles said firmly, glowering at the Queen. She really knew how to wind him up, but at least she wasn't serious, right?

"It wasn't a request, bastard. You'll both leave this way, or you'll never leave this palace." Her eyes practically flashed white with hate again. "You'll be locked up until you die of fin rot, and my husband and I will never have to see or deal with you again."

"What about Link? What measly excuse do you have lined up to take his life from him?"

"Associating with the criminal that attacked me, of course." Scylla purred, sweeping her fish fin hair out of her face. She stepped forward as a taunt. "Which will it be? Hurry up, because I don't think I can stand looking at you any longer."

Oles was seething. He bared his teeth and stood tall, trying to hold onto what honour he had to his name. "You call me out for being a dangerous sorcerer, but you're the evil _hag_ that should be locked away." He declared, stepping backwards onto the edge of the waterfall. Scylla almost recoiled from the insult. He looked to Link, who seemed all ready to go. _This guy really is dauntless,_ he thought. He looked back at the Queen one last time, and she stuck out her chin.

"So be it. Don't come back to my family, or my people." She waved a hand and the zora guards began to step forward, backing the runaway pair onto the edge. They both turned to face the drop, and Oles tried to cast Link a look of apology as they both leant forward. _Let's hope this doesn't hurt too much._

 **eeheehee. I apologise profusely for the fast pacing. I know that escalated way too quickly.**

 **A/N TO EXPLAIN SOME THINGS:**

 **There's an inconsistency with Link's accent/dialect: (I don't know why I came up with this trait at all, but with LINK of all people? He doesn't even speak in the games!) basically I imagined that this world's Link was quite well-spoken but that when he got nervous or was really comfortable/relaxed with whoever he was talking to, his speech would get a little lazier/rushed and he'd adopt a - for want of a better term - slightly lazier accent (ergo why "you" changes to "ya" ...'nd stuff)**

 **All the zoras designs are too diverse agh: okay so I know that in OoT the only zoras that stand out are the royals: Ruto and the King - but I've just seen so many awesome designs for people's zora OCs that I wanted to make all my zoras look different:3 I've tried to make light/pale blue skin, purple eyes and decorative (as opposed to streamlined) fins sort of the trademark royal traits, with King Basile and Prince Kaspar having all of these and Oles also having the purple eyes.**

 **This story has been planned with half-assed effort to be set before OoT on the official 2011 timeline, and my theory is that the zoras will eventually evolve to have a more standard body type (the generic every-zora-apart-from-Ruto-or-her-father one) so I can get away with giving Oles a cephalo-head and all the others their weird colours and fish bodies that you don't see in the games _**

 **I'll also be posting pictures of my characters to my Deviant Art because my descriptive skills aren't very good so you should look at them, here's my first Oles drawing:** **art/Zora-OC-577456051**


End file.
